Old Mole lunged forward on an impulse. He reached the door and glared through the glass. The hall was full of people, there was a great coming and going. He could see neither Matilda nor Panoukian. He turned and walked very slowly down the steps of the hotel. There were four steps. He reached the pavement and was very careful not to walk on the cracks. At the edge of the pavement he stopped and stared vacantly up at the Nelson Column. Small and black against the heavy clouds stood the statue, and almost with a click Old Mole's brain began to think again, mechanically, tick-tocking like a clock, fastening on the object before his eyes, and clothing it with associations. "Nelson--Romney--Lady Hamilton--Lady Hamilton--Emma--Nelson's enchantress--Nelson," and so on all over again. . . . The action of his heart was barely perceptible, a slow beat, a buzzing at his ears. "Nelson--Romney----" He stood gazing up at the statue. The clouds behind it moved and gave it the appearance of moving. It was very certain that the sword moved. . . . "England expects. . . ." He gazed fascinated. A little crowd gathered. Men and women stood around and behind him and gazed up. He was aware of them, and he said: "Idiots." But he could not move. The crowd spread over the pavement and blocked the way. A policeman appeared and moved them on. He jostled Old Mole. "Move on, there. You're causing an obstruction." Old Mole stared at him stupidly. The officer spoke to him again, but made no impression. Old Mole stared at the hotel as though he were trying to remember something about it, but he did not move. The officer hailed a taxi, bundled him into it, and drove with him to the police station. In the charge room there was confabulation, and Old Mole gaped round him: the furniture, the large men in uniform swam mistily before him. One of the men approached him sympathetically, and he heard a voice say: "Can't make nothink of it, sir." His brain fastened on that as expressing something that it was trying to get clear. He felt a slight relaxation of the numbness that was upon him. Another voice said: "What's your name?" "Name?" said Old Mole. The man in front of him said: "The Inspector says: What's the name?" "Panoukian," said Old Mole. VI OUT OF IT _When the pie was opened, the birds began to sing._ THE QUEEN OF HEARTS VI OUT OF IT